Michelle Riddell serves as vice president of strategic communications and community investment at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX). In her role, she leads the public and media relations and executive communications for the Plan President’s Office. She is also responsible for developing the community investment strategy and providing oversight to the Caring for Children Foundation. Currently, Michelle serves as the Chair of Be Covered Texas, a nationally recognized, grassroots community initiative to engage and educate Texans about the new health care law. In 2014, the campaign directly reached 2.48 million Texans through 350 community partners across all 254 counties across Texas. As an advocate for women in the workplace, Michelle has taken on the role of Enterprise Chairperson for Women Improving the Strength of Enterprise, an internal business resource group for employees, and oversees its functions across Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans in Texas, Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Montana. In her commitment to this leadership role, she also participates in two of the company’s Diversity and Inclusion committees the Enterprise Steering Committee and State Operating Committee.
Michelle is a 2012 graduate of the Leading Women’s Executive Program, developed by the Corporate Leadership Center of Chicago. As an active contributor to The North Texas Commission, she currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors and is a graduate of the 2015 Leadership North Texas class, a graduate-level leadership program aimed at recruiting, developing and supporting leaders in the Dallas-Fort Worth region. She also serves as a board member for REAL School Gardens and It’s Time Texas, as well as member of the Dallas Social Venture Partners.
Prior to her transition to BCBSTX, Michelle spent over 20 years at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma (BCBSOK), where she held key management positions across many areas of the organization including Sales and Marketing, Finance and Operations. Michelle graduated with honors from Oral Roberts University with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and passed her certified public accountant exam shortly thereafter. She has been married to her husband, Bill, for more than 25 years and is the proud mother of Tyler, who is pursuing his college degree, also at Oral Roberts University.
